Main achievements of W2R are:
- Development of an integrated wastewater treatment system for the slaughterhouse, consisting of three separated process units (water line, sludge line, algae line) + an energy recovery module (energy line). The water line treats wastewater fulfilling the EU requirements for discharge from urban wastewater treatment plants. The sludge line sanitises the sludge and increases the availability of soluble content. The energy line produces energy after an anaerobic digestion process. The algae line produces algal biomass.
- Obtention of three Secondary Raw Materials (SRMs): a nutrients’ concentrate from the water line, a hydrolysed sludge from the sludge line and an algal biomass from the algae line.
- Formulation of three Agronomic Products (APs): one biofertiliser and two biostimulants. AP1 is a biofertiliser. It resulted to be not economically profitable if transported to manufacture the biofertiliser, but it fits as a great solution to fertigate the surrounding fields, constituting a zero Km solution. AP2 is a biostimulant. It was tested for several crops together with two commercial products and productivity resulted to be similar or better when applying AP2. AP3 is a biostimulant. It resulted especially effective to advance and homogenise sprouting and flowering, setting higher percentages when applying AP3 instead of a chemical control.
- Development of the W2R models for LCA, LCC and social footprinting (including APs production) for two treatment capacities: the demonstrator capacity (1/3 of the slaughterhouse daily flow) and the real slaughterhouse capacity.
- Development of the OH&S risk assessment of the W2R system, identifying the potential hazards and evaluating the associated risks, and suggesting prevention & mitigation options for the risks identified, as well as management recommendations, including the APs.
- Evaluation of the viability of the W2R system in terms of payback period of the project, applying different scenarios for two treatment capacities of the system in the TEA.
- Development of an ETV for the Cascade Flash V.21 (an element from the sludge line). The Verification Body has concluded that there is significant positive difference with regards to alternative technologies.
- Continuous work on stakeholders’ identification and engagement to multiply the project impacts, being focused on specific stakeholder groups: the slaughtering industry, the wastewater treatment industry, the fertiliser industry, farmers, and consumers & NGOs.
- Implementation of a W2R business model based on circular economy approaches and industrial symbiosis schemes, as well as of business opportunities for the involved sectors.
- Creation of a project website (www.water2return.eu) available in EN, ES, FR and DE.
- Presence in social media: Twitter (983 followers, 1,478 tweets), LinkedIn (361 followers, 188 posts) and YouTube (38 subscribers, 37 videos).
- Celebration of a W2R Demo Workshop at the headquarters of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Sustainable Development in Seville with a subsequent institutional visit to the demonstration site.
- Design of two capacity building programmes for the slaughtering industry and farmers and consumers respectively. 9 capacity building workshops in total have been organised within these programmes.
- Elaboration of a Layman’s report.
- Organisation of a project Final Conference in the framework of the Forum for the Future of Agriculture, an open dialogue event for the agriculture and the environment.
